Never Leave My Side
by Rory-Chan26
Summary: Natsu and Lucy finally discover what's most important to them: each other. Before their relationship can bloom, Lucy disappears - for 2 years! She returns looking exactly the same as the day she disappeared, with a new Celestial Key. Did Natsu wait for her? Will he accept her explanation for breaking the promise they made? Or will he walk out of her life, into someone else's arms?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Risky Encounter

All Lucy could think about at the moment was, _Damn, we should have taken the whole team with us, I don't know if Natsu and I can handle this alone!_

Perhaps she was right. What was supposed to be a simple job turned dangerous very quickly. She and Natsu had left yesterday, headed toward a town on the border of a large forest, called Greendale. The job seemed easy enough, "Fairy Tail Wizards Requested to Find a Missing Wizard – Reward: 40,000 Jewell." All they had to do was find the Wizard, bring him into town hall, and collect the reward money.

Or so they thought.

It was a trap from the very beginning. The "Missing Wizard," who calls himself Maverick, put out the request himself, after turning every person in Greendale to stone. He had a grudge on Fairy Tail, and any other sanctioned guild for that matter. He was a member of a dark guild called Wicked Vandal, which was previously taken down and disbanded, as a result of an altercation with Fairy Tail members. Ever since then he had been plotting his revenge, getting stronger and waiting for the right moment to begin his serial guild destruction.

"Lucy, watch out!" Natsu yelled from across the clearing. Lucy dove to the right, just barely missing the arrow as it whirred past her head. "Hang in there Luce! I've almost got this guy now!" he raised his blazoned fists and jumped toward the dark Wizard.

"Right!" She responded, reaching down to her belt for her keys. After fingering through them, she found the right one and shouted, "Open, gate of the Archer, Sagittarius!"

A golden light flashed in the air before Sagittarius appeared, his bow already drawn and ready to fire.

"At your service, Lady Lucy!" He shouted.

"Take that guy out, Sagittarius!" Lucy pointed at Maverick, who was smiling wickedly.

"Right away!" he let an arrow fly, but Maverick was too quick. The evil wizard laughed hysterically.

"Is that the best you can do? Summon some toy to shoot tiny pins at me? At least call out a puppet who can aim properly!" Maverick raised his bow, a magical tool that seemed to be an intangible waft of glowing smoke and light, and loosed an arrow toward Sagittarius.

"Sagittarius, dodge it! Some of his arrows are poisoned!" Lucy cried. But Sagittarius was too slow to dodge the Wizard's arrow; as it passed through him, his gate was closed so quickly he only had time to shoot an apologetic look at Lucy before disappearing into the celestial world.

Arrows continued to fly in Lucy's direction until out of the blue, Natsu appeared with his flames flailing about in anger. Maverick had been so focused on attacking Lucy, he forgot all about the Dragon Slayer, who inhaled a gust of air and released a massive Fire Dragon's Roar right in his direction.

Maverick was thrown off guard and whirled around to dodge the attack – too slow. His right arm took the brunt of Natsu's attack, and he fell to his knees in pain. When he saw the pink-haired monster stomping toward him, his body completely on fire, he stood up and ran. In panic, he loosed two arrows at once, one at Natsu, and one at Lucy.

Natsu dodged easy enough, and Lucy was picked up by Happy just in time. He set her down gently and she thanked him. However, she was exhausted. She had already called on three other spirits that day, all in less than an hour worth of fighting. She could summon one more, but it would almost completely drain her of magic energy and leave her weak and defenseless.

"You weak little girl, why don't you just call one of your puppets to take the hit for you so you can save your energy? What a waste of talent you are." Maverick sneered at her with a twisted smile.

"First of all, they are not puppets; they are Celestial Spirits! And second of all, I would never, ever call on one of my friends for such a reason. They are my friends, not my shields!" at these words, she could feel a warmth in her heart as her spirits sent her their feelings as well. They were her friends, her allies. They loved her as much as she loved them.

"How pointless and childish." He yawned. "In that case, why don't I just shoot you where you stand and call it a day?" He raised his bow once more with a poisoned arrow, ready to fly, when he was stopped by a hand at his throat. Natsu had a hold of Maverick's coat, pulling him toward a furious pair of amber eyes.

"You won't lay a single blow on Lucy." Natsu growled. "You'll be pummeled before you can even let that arrow fly." His face was twisted in fury, his chest rising and falling quickly, flames rising in his belly and out of his fingertips. "If you want her, you'll have to go through me!"

"Aye, Sir!" agreed Happy.

"Ahh I see how it is," Maverick nearly whispered, then in a louder voice he said, "terribly sorry, I hate to break it to you but I don't need my arms to use my bow. That's all just for theatrics." He snapped his fingers, and the wispy figure of the bow appeared again at his side, aimed right for Lucy.

"If you were to 'pummel' me, it would take less than a second for me to drive this arrow into your fair lady's heart. If you don't, I'll use it to take you out. Your choice." He said with a sick grin and a chuckle.

Natsu didn't even need to think. He knew exactly what he was going to do. There was no way he was letting this creep go, not after everything he put them through and how much he hurt Lucy already. What was the pain of some little stick of an arrow anyway? At that, he raised his flaming fist and drove it right into the evil wizard's face.

Right on cue, the arrow went flying toward Lucy, who pulled out her whip as if she attempted to knock it away. Natsu, however, had other plans. He raced the arrow to Lucy, faster than he had ever ran, pushed her out of the way and took the hit. He moved so quickly it was hard to tell if he was running, jumping, or flying. In a split second, Natsu was on the ground with the arrow embedded in his shoulder.

When Lucy finally realized what happened, she looked to Maverick, who was unconscious and probably on the verge of bleeding out, and then to Natsu lying on the ground in front of her. He was sweating and breathing heavily, his right arm reaching out to hold his left arm to his side, an arrow protruding from his left shoulder.

"Natsu, you idiot! Why would you do something so reckless?!" She cried, running over to him and kneeling beside him. He was not shaken with pain, although his face was scrunched up at the twinge from the arrow.

"It's just an arrow, Luce," he grinned, "Wendy can heal me right up when we get home!"

"But the arrow was laced with poison! What if we don't make it home in time?" At this, Natsu's eyes widened with shock as Lucy's face began streaming with tears. Now that she mentioned it, he began to feel dizzy and her blonde hair was looking more fuzzy than usual.

"No way, Lucy, I'll be fine." He breathed, starting to feel the effects more heavily.

"You're so stupid, Natsu. How could you do this to me? I can't lose you, I can't watch you die!" she cried more heavily, leaning over his chest as her body shook with tremoring sobs. How could she ever get over the guilt of letting him die because he took a hit for her? He looked at her with a softened gaze.

"You can't lose me, Luce. We're partners, and I'll never leave you. We'll always be together – you, me and Happy." He looked dazed and his words were blurring together. In response, Lucy looked directly into his eyes and spoke.

"I'm not letting you go out like this. Happy!" she called out to the Exceed, who was too shaken to feel the gravity of the situation.

"Aye!"

"Fly Natsu to the guild hall. It'll take time but it's his only hope of surviving. I have no idea what's in that poison or how long it takes to take effect, but if he has any chance of getting to Wendy before that happens, we have to take it!" she stood up, brushing off her skirt and looked at Happy with determination; she tried to ignore the feeling of doom setting in around her – she had to be positive for Natsu, he just had to make it through this!

"You got it!" Happy cried as he lifted his wings and carried Natsu into the air, trying not to shed a tear for his friend. Natsu's speech was beginning to fail; he couldn't respond to the situation. Only look upon Lucy's shrinking figure as she gathered up Maverick, handcuffed him, and began dragging him in the direction of the town. He wondered if all the people turned to stone had woken up. Or if Lucy would be okay with that creep by herself. All he knew for sure, was that he was so glad to not be taking the train back to Magnolia.

With that thought, he drifted into sleep.

"Hang on, Natsu. Please don't leave me. I need you." Lucy whispered, watching his retreating figure fly away toward home. "Please make it in time." She wiped a tear from her cheek before grabbing Maverick under the shoulders and dragging him out of the clearing.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I forgot to mention this before, but for the preceding chapter, this chapter, and all that follow, I do not own Fairy Tail or any of its' characters. Enjoy Reading!**

* * *

Chapter 2:

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, a light breeze was blowing through the trees, scattering leaves along the path that was now walked by one solitary mage. Lucy knew she shouldn't be shuffling her feet along the ground, dragging out the time it would take to get back to Magnolia – back to Fairy Tail.

Back to Natsu.

She knew she should be rushing, running even. Trying as hard as she could to get back and find out if he was okay. But the truth was, she almost didn't want to know. She was so afraid he would be still unconscious, or worse…

 _No. I can't think about that now. I have to try and be positive for Natsu._

However, that was a difficult thing to do. As her feet dragged across the leaves along the barely visible dirt path, her arms crossed behind her back and her keys jingling in the wind, Lucy looked to the sky in an attempt to prevent the tears from pooling around her eyes. She watched as the tops of the trees passed her by and the clouds drifted in the wind. Her chest rose and fell in a deep breath. She looked back down at her feet, crossed her arms over her chest, and continued her slow shuffling.

How could she handle it if Natsu didn't make a recovery like he usually does? What if this time, his body just couldn't take the hit, couldn't burn off the poison? She agonized at the thought of Natsu's face twisted in pain, slowly dying under the effects of the poison. It was her fault, all her fault. If only she wasn't so weak, so useless. If only she could have been quicker, if Natsu could have trusted her to knock the arrow away on her own.

 _Damn it!_ She stomped her foot to the ground, crushing her tears between tightly shut eyelids. _This is Natsu I'm thinking about! I shouldn't be moping around, worrying about what could have happened during that fight. I shouldn't be dragging my feet, worrying about how I'll feel when I see him! How could I be so selfish? I'm his partner! He needs me right now!_

At that, she took off running. Off in the distance, she could see the top of the train station over the trees. Magnolia, Fairy Tail, and Natsu weren't so far away now!

* * *

 _Back at Fairy Tail…_

"Do you think he's going to be alright, Wendy?" Happy asked, worry all over his face.

"His chances are pretty good, he just needs to sleep and sweat it out now." The blue haired Dragon Slayer said, taking the damp cloth off of Natsu's forehead, shaking it out, and replacing it.

The pink haired man lay on the hospital bed inside the guild hall's infirmary, his face mostly stoic, his body sweating profusely. Wendy removed as much of the poison as she could and healed the entry wound of the arrow. Natsu's body was naturally trying to burn off the rest with his Fire Dragon Slayer powers. Whether he would make it or not was now up to him and his own pure will.

"I'm going to go update the others on how he's doing, Happy. And I'll see if anyone has heard from Lucy too, okay?" Wendy took one more concerned look at the two best friends in Fairy Tail before walking out the door, closing it softly behind her.

"Aye…" Happy responded, although he knew Wendy had already gone. He stared at his best friend, before deciding it would be good for him to leave too, to give him time to rest. And he really needed some fish!

* * *

When Lucy finally arrived at the Guild Hall, everyone was waiting for her, ready to pounce with questions about what really happened on the mission and what exactly happened to Natsu. Lucy, however, was not interested in answering questions at the time. All she wanted was to see her partner and make sure he was okay. She had made a long journey alone and had too much time to think about what happened. She didn't want to talk about it right now.

Levy, who had pestered her the most fervently, blushed in embarrassment at Lucy's response to their bombardment. Of course she wouldn't want to talk now! She needed to see that he was okay and that was very understandable. Levy always had a hunch that whatever was going on between Natsu and Lucy was a bit more than 'partnership,' but she kept that to herself – and all the other girls in the guild of course. She knew if it were Gajeel in the infirmary unconscious, she wouldn't even stop for conversation before trying to see him. She placed her hand on Lucy's shoulder, who was now on the brink of tears.

"Come on, Lucy, I'll take you to him." She said with an understanding look. Lucy gave a small smile in thanks and followed Levy to the infirmary. When Levy opened the door, Lucy gasped at the sight of Natsu laying on the bed, covered up with a towel on his forehead, looking incredibly vulnerable. She never wanted to see him like this.

"Wendy says she's done everything she can for him. Now it's all up to his Magic and his will to live at this point." Levy said, gravely. Lucy made a small sigh of relief, which caused the Script User to look at her curiously.

"If it's up to him, I guess we have nothing to worry about." Lucy said, turning to her blue haired friend with a weak smile. Levy could tell that Lucy really wanted to believe her own words, but she was still worried.

"Yeah, you're right!" she gave Lucy a wide smile and a hug, hoping that made her best friend feel a little better, then left the two alone in the room.

Lucy strode over to Natsu's bedside, observing her partner as she approached. In a way, he was kind of beautiful – more like handsome. She never really took the time to look at him, as they were always busy and she didn't want him to notice. But now, as guilty as she might feel, she took advantage of the situation and took a good long look.

His rose colored hair was draped over the towel on his head, wet and sticky. She brushed it away from his face, amazed by how soft it felt, compared to how rugged and spiky it appeared to be. As her fingers brushed over his face, she took the towel from his forehead and wiped it down his cheeks, removing sweat from his serene face. She was lost in the beauty of the way his eyelashes laid across the top of his cheeks – how his partly opened lips moved ever so slightly as he exhaled.

No one would ever see this side of Natsu but her. Sure, they would look, but they would still see his rough edges and his boisterous attitude. They wouldn't look at him the way she was; she could see underneath everything that he could be gentle, soft, and damn near gorgeous.

Lucy was no idiot. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what it means when your heart leaps from your chest at the sight of someone you care about. She knows what it means when no matter how long you spend with a person, you never get tired of them; no matter how many annoying things a person does, you can't stay mad at them. She was a novelist for Mavis' sake! How could she not know?

After this risky encounter with Maverick, she could no longer deny what her heart was feeling and her mind was telling her. She knew exactly how she felt for her partner.

She also knew that she could never tell him. It would ruin everything they've built as friends. If he rejected her, how could she live with the shame and embarrassment? How could she go on missions and act like everything was normal? If he returned her affection, and didn't reject her, what if something happened? What if they broke up? Then she wouldn't have a friend or a boyfriend. She'd be alone and miserable without him in her life.

She sat down in the seat next to his bed, reaching under the sheet to grab his sweaty, calloused hand in hers. She stared up at his face and sighed.

"Hey, Natsu. I finally made it. Sorry it took me so long. I thought you would be awake by now; you're stronger than this." She began to tear up. "I'm so sorry, Natsu. I failed you. I was so weak and so vulnerable and all I could do was stand there and let you save me." She squeezed his hand, more tears beginning to fall on the mattress beside it. "I understand if you wouldn't want to keep a lousy partner like me around. I'm just a liability and I don't know what I would do if you died because of me. I can't lose you Natsu…" Lucy sobbed.

She felt the hand in hers squeeze her fingers lightly, and her head shot up to look directly into Natsu's half-lidded amber orbs.

"Lucy…you're here…" he croaked. She grabbed his hand tighter.

"Yes, I'm right here, Natsu." She smiled at him, wiping her tears away.

"I'm not going anywhere, Luce. I'll make it through this; I can tell I'm almost out of the woods." He breathed. "I promise I will never leave you alone and I'll never want another partner. You and I belong together." He leaned his head back to the pillow, his eyes drifting closed.

Lucy, blushing profusely, said, "Natsu stay awake. You have to stay with me. What do you mean we belong together? Because we're partners? Because we make a good team?"

"Because I love you, weirdo."

Lucy's heart stopped. He didn't really just say that, did he? Was the fever getting to his head?

"N-natsu, you can't possibly know what you're saying. You have a high fever. Should I get you some water?" she stuttered as her face turned the shade of Natsu's hair. At this, Natsu turned his head in her direction, and lifted himself up halfway. With the hand that was still surrounded by her smaller ones, he reached up behind her neck and pulled her in, clumsily crashing her lips onto his.

She was frozen solid. Lucy had no idea what to do. Did she kiss him back so he knew she wasn't rejecting him? What if he was just in a feverish stupor? Would that be taking advantage of him? She couldn't decide. Before she could decide what to do, Natsu released her and flopped back down on his pillow.

"I mean it. Now, Lucy I need you to do something for me." His eyes remained closed.

"S-sure Natsu. What do you want?"

"Bring me some fish! I'm so hungry I could eat all the fish in the world!" With a fist shot in the air, he yelled, in a high pitched voice, "Aye, Sir!" before completely passing out again. He was blissfully unaware of the confession he just made.

Lucy sweat-dropped. Letting out a long breath, she realized she must have been holding it for some time. What was she supposed to do with this new information?

Knowing that Natsu was going to be perfectly fine. She grinned to herself, her heart swelling, knowing he felt the same for her. She decided to leave it alone for now, so she stood up and left Natsu to his sweet dreams.

* * *

 **A/N : Thank you for reading! I hadn't intended on uploading a new chapter so soon, but I couldn't help myself!**

 **Please review! I appreciate any feedback!**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

When Natsu finally woke up, he was…in his house? In his room? When did he get there? The last thing he remembered was showing up at the guild with Happy, then Lucy came to visit him and…

Oh god.

He sat up abruptly, immediately regretting it and holding his head in his hands to soothe the immediate headache he received.

What in Mavis' name kind of crazy things had he said to Lucy? Natsu didn't remember much, just a vague fear in the back of his head that he had said something incredibly compromising right in front of her.

He reached his fingers up and touched his lips as the memory started flooding back.

Aw, Crap.

He sighed loudly, almost yelling, and flopped back into his pillow. Had he just ruined everything?

As he looked up into his ceiling, he thought, 'Hopefully Lucy just passes it off as being super drugged and that I was just blabbering…"

His cheeks flushed as he pulled the pillow out from under his head and smashed it into his face. Sighing again as he tried to fall back asleep and put off facing reality as long as possible. He drifted off with the aching fear that he had just made Lucy really angry with him and ruined his friendship forever.

* * *

"God, why did I have to volunteer for this job? These bags are so heavy!" Lucy groaned as she looked down at the collection of plastic grocery bags that were currently digging deep into her forearms.

Earlier that day, Natsu had been moved to his home as he was doing much better and stood to gain a full recovery on his own. Mira suggested that someone go to the market and pick up some groceries for his house, considering he had been living at the guild for almost a week and wouldn't have anything proper to eat at home.

Lisanna had almost perked up and volunteered, but before she could open her mouth, Lucy had volunteered, saying she already needed to go visit him anyway and she already knew the kind of groceries Natsu kept at home.

Okay so the latter was mostly a lie, but she did want to go visit him. She wanted to be the first one to be there when he woke up. She could make a pretty well educated guess on the kinds of things Natsu liked to keep in his fridge, and she decided against buying most of them. She would not fuel his junk food cravings! If he wanted to eat everything in sight, it might as well be things that are good for him and will help him get better. Even if she had to cook them for him.

She blushed at the thought of cooking food for him and imagined him eating everything, telling her it was delicious.

If her arms weren't completely loaded down with stuff, she would have reached up and smacked herself in the face.

'Get it together! You're a wizard of Fairy Tail, not some doting little housewife!'

Thank Mavis she was almost to Natsu's house. She could barely see the small welcome sign with Happy's face on it through the trees.

When she reached up to turn the handle, she realized it might be locked and cringed at the thought of having to set all the groceries down to knock. However, to her luck, the door knob turned and the big wooden door swung open to reveal Natsu's living room within.

Gross.

There were dirty clothes in random places, food plates and cups all over the living room, and the whole place smelled like week old dirty socks.

How could he live like this? Yuck.

So she quickly walked over to the kitchen, which was not in much better shape than the living room, and sat the grocery bags on the floor, as there was no room on the counter. If she wanted to put the food away properly, she would have to clean the kitchen.

So she cleaned the entire house, apart from Natsu's room. Lucy just could not deal with that level of sloppiness and she was sure as hell not going to help Natsu recover or make him food in a house that filthy. Once everything was in order, she moved to the kitchen and began putting the food away.

Natsu finally rose, his headache mostly gone, but the grogginess still there. He rolled out of bed, ignoring the state of his hair and not bothering to put on a shirt, and walked out of his room toward the kitchen for some water.

* * *

Natsu finally rose, his headache mostly gone, but the grogginess still there. He rolled out of bed, ignoring the state of his hair and not bothering to put on a shirt, and walked out of his room toward the kitchen for some water.

The moment he stepped out of his bedroom, something wasn't right. After a frozen moment, he realized his living room was super clean. Way cleaner than when he left it a few days ago... or a week ago, or however long ago it was.

Scratching the back of his head, he turned to the kitchen and recognized a familiar smell right away. Lucy. She's been here, which must explain why his house was so clean. Was she still here? After listening, he noticed that there were rustling sounds coming from the kitchen. It must be her.

Forgetting about his appearance, he strode toward the kitchen entrance and stopped in his tracks. The kitchen was spotless, but that wasn't what his gaze was stuck on.

The fridge door was open and all he could see was Lucy's round buttocks sticking out of it. She was bent over, rearranging the items in the fridge and throwing things away, and her shorts were doing a terrible job of covering anything. His eyes traveled over her form, moving and reaching, muttering to herself, her ass clearly visible and she was completely unaware. He felt a stirring in his shorts and decided it would be a good idea to stop looking and make his presence known.

He cleared his throat and tried to conceal his flushed face that matched his hair.

"Shit!" Lucy hissed as she jumped, smacking her head against the top of the fridge and quickly spinning around to see Natsu leaning against the doorway with a severe case of bedhead, looking a little pinker than usual, if that were possible.

And shirtless.

Lucy gulped and regained her composure, before glaring at the man standing in the doorway.

"Give a little warning before you scare the crap out of me, will ya, Natsu?" she said, rubbing the sore spot on the back of her head. She stepped out from the fridge door and closed it.

"What are you doing here, Luce?" he asked nonchalantly, as if he were asking, 'Do you come here often?'

"Bringing food to your ungrateful ass, that's what. Your fridge was practically empty, you know!" She placed her hands on her hips, accentuating her curves by placing her weight on one leg and shifting to the side.

"That reminds me! I am starving! What do we got, Luce?" he suddenly looked very excited and rushed over to the refrigerator that she just finished organizing.

"Hey, hey, don't push yourself just because you have the appetite of a dragon, Natsu. Just go sit in the living room and I'll make something for you. N-natsu you can't just eat raw eggs, stop it!" she snatched the egg out of his hand in front of his open mouth, and turned him around, pushing him out the door and into the living room.

She walked him over to the couch, threw a blanket over his lap, and pointed at his face. "Stay."

Then she sauntered back into the kitchen and began working on his meal.

Natsu leaned his head on the back of the couch and let out a deep breath. Today was going to be a long day. She hadn't said anything yet about the conversation they had back in the infirmary. But with the way his mind was headed, and that outfit she was wearing, in his house, it might take all his willpower to not mention it himself.

* * *

When Lucy finally came out of the kitchen, she was holding a tray with a bowl of steaming soup, a sandwich that was so tall it almost blocked her face, and a big glass of Juice. Natsu almost drooled. He was so incredibly hungry and he could not wait to devour everything in sight.

She gracefully traveled over to the couch, setting the tray on the coffee table and taking her seat next to Natsu.

"Well, dig in. I know you must be starving." She almost laughed at his expression as he stared hungrily at the food in front of him.

He didn't need to be told twice. Starting with the sandwich, he grabbed it with both hands and opened his mouth as wide as he could, shoving it in and taking a huge sloppy bite. Lucy had to stifle her disgusted face as she always did when he was eating in front of her. She decided to lean back against the couch and wait for him to finish, just watching him and fiddling with her bracelet nervously.

As Natsu chomped away at his food, Lucy was deep in thought. Should she mention what happened in the infirmary? Did Natsu remember? Did he mean anything he said, or did that day? She didn't want to bring it up, didn't want to ruin their friendship. Even worse, what if he did mean it? What if they got together and ended up breaking up? That would be so much worse.

Natsu seemed to notice Lucy making a worried face and turned to her as he finished washing down his food with the juice.

"What's up, Luce? You've got a weird face."

"Wow, thanks asshole." Lucy scoffed.

"No, you know what I meant." He sighed and stared into her eyes, observing her with concern.

Lucy guessed it was going to come out eventually; better sooner than later and just get this over with.

She sighed deeply, looking in a different direction. Anywhere other than his face.

"Natsu… I don't know if you remember or not, but I came to visit you when you were in the infirmary."

Natsu gulped and his heart dropped into his stomach. Here it is, she's going to end their friendship and pass him off as a total creep.

"Oh…you did?" he played it off.

"Yeah. I did. And I wanted to talk to you about a particular…conversation…we had." She waited for a response from Natsu, but his only answer was to turn his head down to his empty plate. He didn't want her to see him blushing just thinking about it.

"Natsu, I'm not going to repeat the entire conversation to you, but I have a question to ask you."

A question? She's not just going to leave?

"Do you have feelings for me?" At this, Natsu looked up at Lucy. She was still fiddling with her bracelet, looking away toward the kitchen and biting her bottom lip. She was so nervous and he could tell. But why? It was hard to focus on anything but her adorable bottom lip poking out from under her teeth.

"Um…" he drawled, unable to respond. He just sat there, staring at her with a dumb, shocked look on his face.

"You told me, that day, that you loved me. And that you always wanted us to be together. And you… You…." She flushed, remembering what happened next. Her eyes scrunched together and she turned her face to look down in her lap. "I just want to know if you meant any of that or if it was just the fever." Her voice was shaking slightly.

He gulped. "Luce, that was nothing, it was just the drugs talking and I… I didn't mean it. I'm sorry." He forced a grin and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, trying to pass it off as nothing. 'WHY DID I JUST SAY THAT? I should have just told her the truth!'

The look on Lucy's face could have killed him. She looked up into his eyes for a brief moment, before looking away and blinking hard. The smell of tears reached his nose and she spoke, softly, "Thanks for clarifying that for me, Natsu."

He had really hurt her. He could see it right in front of him. He should have told her the truth from the start. Without thinking, he reached out and wrapped her in his arms tightly. His face was right beside hers and he spoke into her hair.

"I'm sorry, Luce, that was a lie. I don't care if you'll hate me or if you won't want to be partners anymore. I remember everything that happened at the guild. I remember what I said and I remember that I kissed you." He threw it all out rapidly, barely catching his breath and his heart was squeezing tightly in his chest.

He felt her inhale sharply, a gasp. She had barely returned his hug and he didn't know if it was because she didn't like the embrace or if he was squeezing her too hard. He slightly released his grip, allowing her to exhale. Natsu rested his forehead on her shoulder, sighing deeply and lowering his arms to rest on the couch next to Lucy's thighs.

"I remember it all and I meant it all." He whispered into her neck, causing goosebumps to run over her collarbone. As much as he wanted to say these words to her face, he couldn't muster up enough courage to look her in the eye. He was afraid of what he might find in those deep brown eyes. Would it be disgust? Anger? Or maybe Love? Acceptance? She remained silent.

"It's always been you, Luce. I don't know when it started and I don't care. I can't hide it anymore. You're the only person I've ever felt this way for and I didn't know how to handle it. I'm sorry if you don't feel the same way. It's okay if you don't. I understand if you don't want to be around me anymore…"

He was going to say more, as he was starting to ramble, but he felt Lucy's slender arms reach around him, drawing him closer into the embrace. She rested her forehead on his shoulder so they were in the same position, and she spoke, in almost a whisper, through her tears.

"You're so stupid, Natsu." He was expecting that. It hurt a little bit, but what he was not expecting was, "I've been in love with you for so long."

His heart stopped. Then it began pounding a thousand beats a minute. His words caught in his throat and he couldn't respond. He wanted to jump for joy but he needed confirmation that she had really just said that. She just said the words that he had dreamed she would say to him for such a long time. Had he dreamed of this moment? Of this level of confession, here, in his house, on his couch?

He grabbed her shoulders and separated their bodies, forcing her to look him right in the eyes. She looked so happy and so sure of herself. Small tears were running down her face and he knew she couldn't be lying. She wasn't messing with him.

"I love you, Lucy." He stared directly into her beautiful brown eyes as he spoke. He needed her to say it back. That was all he needed. He awaited her response.

"I love you, Natsu." She said determinedly, her eyes not leaving his for a second.

In an instant she was in his arms again, squeezed tightly in Natsu's grip. He was so happy. He was on cloud nine and nothing could bring him down and his smile would forever be plastered on his face. She loved him! She loved him and he loved her and finally, they both knew it. Out loud. In person.

He pulled back and placed his forehead against hers. She was breathing heavily, trying to catch her breath after the death hug he had just given her. He took in her scent, the smell of her hair, her skin, her breath. He couldn't help but lean in to her face, and she leaned in to meet him.

He stopped just as their lips were less than an inch away from each other.

"I need you to promise me, Lucy. Promise me that we will be different. That we'll always be together. If this happens, if we do this, I want you to only be mine and I'll only be yours. And I'll be by your side forever and I'll always protect you. We'll always be partners, best friends, and mates. I can't do this unless you promise me forever." He was almost whispering and his voice was ragged. He wanted to kiss her but he couldn't be like anyone else she had ever been with. He couldn't be just another guy. She was the only one he would ever love.

Tears welled up in her eyes again and she smiled, reaching up to place her hand on his cheek.

"I promise, Natsu. Forever. I'll never leave you. I'll always be yours and you'll be mine."

At that, he closed the space between them. Planting a soft and passionate kiss on her lips. He felt her sigh through her nose as her hand reached up from his cheek to wrap around the back of his head and hold him in place. He pushed her back until she leaned against the arm of the couch and deepened the kiss. He had no idea he could be so gentle, and truthfully he was losing his gentleness, replacing it with a desperate need to be closer to her. He wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her closer to him.

Their lips were moving as they both breathed heavily, inhaling and exhaling quickly in the small breaks between lip locks. Her face was hot and she could feel the heat of his skin through his shirt. He was steadily getting hotter and hotter, getting so worked up that he was starting to sweat.

He couldn't get enough of her, she was just like fire, the best he had ever tasted. She was so beautiful and her body was hot with desire for him. She was the sun, the moon, the stars. She was everything and he would never want any more than this.

Lucy realized he was getting way too hot and that this was probably not the best thing to do while he was trying to recover. She pushed away and broke off the kiss. His eyes remained closed and he growled as he reached for her to force their lips together again. She held fast and pulled his hand away.

"Natsu. You're still sick. You shouldn't get all worked up like this." She said, but he knew she couldn't help herself either. He kissed her again, and she let him.

"Can't… help it." He said in between kisses. She almost couldn't handle how sexy his voice sounded, laced with desire and starting to drown in the fever of the moment. But she pushed him up again, this time rolling off the couch and pulled him to stand up with her.

"There's all the time in the world for us to do anything we want." She breathed, her hair disheveled and her lips pink and swollen from their encounter. "Right now you need to rest and recover. I promise I'll still be here."

"Luuuuuce, how can I sleep after all this? I'm totally fine!" he threw his arms in the air in his tantrum, but all of a sudden he felt his balance wavering and he needed to sit down again.

"See?" she said, looking at him with an 'I told you so.' Look on her face.

He flopped down on the couch, finally giving in. "Fine, but I'm not going to my room. If you want me to rest, you have to lay here with me." He reached his arm out, opening a space for her to lay down in front of him on the sofa.

She blushed, but conceded. She laid down in front of him on the couch, and he draped his arm over her waist, pulling her closer to him.

He inhaled the smell of her hair, burying his face in the back of her neck and began to drift off. Lucy laid her arm across his and a huge grin spread across her face.

She could not believe how the day had turned out, and had no idea where this was going to go next. All she knew was that she was the happiest girl in the entire world and nothing could take that away from her. She couldn't wait to wake up next to her pink haired partner. Her nakama, her lover. She snuggled closer to him and didn't realize when she began to drift into sleep as well.

* * *

 **Sorry for the late update! Thank you for all the follows and reviews! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and those to come!**

 **I know it seems like the romance is progressing a little too quickly for a story that isn't a one shot, but trust me, there is so much more to cover in this story. You'll not regret it if you continue to follow and read! Thank you!**


	4. Chapter 4

The past two months flew by blissfully. The day after Natsu awoke from his fever, he had fully recovered and joined the rest of his family in the guild hall.

He practically broke down the front door, a widespread grin on his face.

"I'm back everybody!" He shouted at the top of his lungs so that everyone would turn to look in his direction. Reedus paused his painting, Mirajane dropped the tray she was holding, and Cana's booze of the day spilled from her open jaw. For when Natsu burst through the door, he pulled behind him a blushing, grinning celestial mage, holding his hand.

They were immediately bombarded with questions about their relationship, but everyone was incredibly happy for them.

They didn't seemed embarrassed at all, apart from Lucy's shyness when Natsu threw their new status through the door like a battering ram. The two of them held hands for most of the day, joining everyone in laughter and reciprocating all the teasing they got from everyone else. They chatted the day away with all of their friends and family at the guild, and neither of them had ever seemed happier.

Still, they were inseparable. Two months had passed, and what hadn't changed was that Natsu and Lucy did everything together as usual. That was the same as when they were just partners. Natsu would follow Lucy to the market and question every single item she bought, all while annoying shop owners by touching the merchandise and being less than delicate or polite. Lucy would go with Natsu and Happy to the lake and watch them fish while she would read a book, occasionally throwing small twigs or rocks in their direction to get them to quiet down.

However, now there was more they shared together. They would walk home together from the guild, hand in hand, talking about how the day went. Lucy would walk along the edge of the canal while Natsu held onto one of her fingers to make sure she didn't fall in. The two wizards would sit in Lucy's apartment eating snacks and staying awake for hours talking about mostly nothing. They took the time to slowly progress their relationship and didn't push it too quickly. Lucy still woke up with Natsu in her bed, but this time it was expected. He would lay next to her, her back to his chest and his arm around her waist, and get up every morning without a swift Lucy kick to the face as a wake up call.

As always, they went on many missions together, usually walking for days just to avoid taking the train for Natsu's sake, and making barely enough cash to pay Lucy's rent.

Lucy looked up from her book, "You know, Natsu, if you're going to sleep at my house every night, you should really pay part of the rent."

"What do you mean, Lucy? We always slept at your house before and you never said anything." He said, not even looking over his shoulder. He was too focused on his fishing line in the water.

At this, she blushed. Had he really been over there EVERY night? No wonder Cana was always cracking rude jokes about them and nobody seemed too surprised overall that they had ended up dating. They were attached to each other before either of them even realized it.

"Yeah, well, I'm getting tired of all my money going to rent and all of your money going to who knows what." She scoffed, burying her nose back in her book.

"Excuse me, but Happy and I have very important expenses that need taken care of." He snorted indignantly at her. "We can't just go blowing our money on stuff like rent, silly."

"Aye!" Happy chimed in. He was delightedly pulling in another fish, all while gloating in Natsu's face that he had been the only one successful in catching anything that day. Natsu stuck out his tongue in retaliation and Lucy rolled her eyes at his lack of maturity. She inwardly laughed at herself for even liking such a guy.

But it was more than that. She really loved him and she knew he felt the same way for her. Even though it had only been two months since the day they decided to pursue a real relationship, she had known him for years and they had been through more than any normal couple would have. She knew she could count on him for anything and she would do anything for him in return. And that's how it would always be.

When it was time to pack up and leave, they loaded up all the fish they, meaning Happy, had caught, and strode off in the direction of Lucy's apartment. Natsu and Happy hadn't been to their own house in a long time, other than to grab some essential items and go back to Lucy's place.

As they walked back, Natsu looked over at his Blonde teammate's face, noticing her perplexed expression. "What'sa matter, Luce?" He asked, reaching out and snagging her hand in his. She seemed to blink and snap out of her trance to look at him.

"Oh.. I was just thinking about the job we're taking tomorrow. You know we're probably going to have to take the train, right?" Natsu's heart dropped into his stomach.

"Nooooooo, Lucyyyyyy. Why do we have to take the train? We can walk there, can't we?" He whined.

"It's a week long walk or a two day train ride, Natsu. We won't even get there in time if we walk and we don't have enough supplies or ways to carry them to last us a whole week." She sighed. Squeezing his hand, she grinned. "Just do this for me, okay? It won't even be that bad."

Looking into her eyes, he couldn't disagree even the slightest. "Fine." He pouted.

As they approached Lucy's apartment building, Natsu couldn't help but think to himself as he watched her lead the way.

He was so lucky. He never would have thought in a million years that Lucy and he would end up together. He had never considered love an option for his future until he met her. She just showed up in his life one day and changed it drastically for the better. She was always pushing him to be better, to get stronger, to love and to fight and to stand with your friends. Lucy was exactly the kind of wizard that belonged in Fairy Tail, that belonged with him. He suddenly felt like he would burst if he didn't make his feelings known to her right then and there.

As she was fumbling with her apartment keys, he grabbed her shoulders and wheeled her around to face him, forcing her back to the door.

"Natsu, I'm trying to –" but she was cut off by Natsu's lips crashing onto hers. She sighed deeply and relaxed into his arms, allowing his lips to move against hers. The kiss was getting more intense by the second, his hands and lips becoming more desperate as her hands danced in his pink locks. Lucy reached back to her keys and desperately tried to fit the key into the lock to open the door.

When it finally clicked open, the two of them practically fell into her living room as the door gave way to the weight being pressed on it. Natsu supported Lucy with his arm as she nearly fell backward, while kicking the door closed behind him.

Lucy pulled back, pushing against his chest to separate their lips and breathing heavily, finally needing air.. Natsu opened his eyes to see his beautiful celestial mage in a state of disrepair. Her hair was falling out of the ribbon on the side of her head, with wisps and bangs framing her face. Her pink lips were redder from their kiss, pouting toward him seductively and her eyes looked into his with a hint of lust and fire. She was so gorgeous. He did this to her; only he made her look this way and he wanted more.

He leaned in again but this time she leaned away.

"Natsu, what's gotten into you? I don't mind, trust me, but what brought all this on?"

He wrapped his arms around her waist, sneakily leading her to the bed as he spoke.

"Do I need a reason, Luce? I just want to show you how much I care about you." He kissed her forehead and snuck his hands under the back of her shirt, pulling her closer to him. Natsu sensed the goosebumps rippling up from his fingertips and up her back. Lucy gasped and tensed up at his touch. His face inched closer to hers to close the gap between them.

"I love you, Lucy." He whispered, eyes shut and closed the gap between their lips again. This time, the back of her thighs were up against the edge of the bed and she fell back with the force of his lips on hers. Lucy squeaked but didn't reject him again. She let herself fall, wrapping her arms around his neck and turning her head to deepen the kiss.

Natsu groaned into her open mouth as he pressed himself closer to her. It was deliciously hot as they both frantically tried to grope every available piece of skin with their roaming hands. Everywhere he touched her lit her skin on fire and his hands couldn't stop as his fingertips tingled in excitement with every further touch. He reached down, dragging his fingers from her knee up her inner thigh and slipping under her skirt, quickly grabbing her backside and squeezing. She gasped.

Lucy reached for his vest, throwing it over his shoulders, her lips never leaving his. He helped her as he grabbed it with his free hand and throwing it across the room and doing the same with his scarf. He reached for the zipper between her breasts and started to tug it downwards, opening it to almost completely allow full view of her.

At this point, Lucy stopped and seemed to wake from her stupor. She pushed Natsu up off of her, breaking their kiss and looking into his eyes.

"I love you too, Natsu, but are we ready for this right now?" She looked frightened. He could see in her eyes she was worried that it was him that wasn't ready. That she had something to worry about from their relationship.

"Lucy, I was ready the moment I agreed to this relationship. I told you, you have nothing to worry about from me. I will never leave you. I'll never betray you. I'll never regret you and I'll never go back on my word. If we're doing this, it's forever and I won't ever let anyone else have you. Never."

She couldn't believe her ears, such serious and heartfelt words coming from Natsu, who looked at her, confident and smiling. He was unwavering and resolute. He meant every word he said and she could feel the emotional tears welling up in her eyes.

"Me too, Natsu. I meant everything I said that day. I don't ever want to lose you and lose everything that I have with you. I was worried that taking this step would push us over the line of ever going back to friends in case it didn't work out. But you're right. There's no going back from here, from where we've already been. I'm ready to dive into anything with you and never turn back. I love you so much."

That was all he needed to tell him to go ahead. He crashed his lips onto hers and kept going where he left off.

Thank Mavis they got home early. It was going to be a long night and they had a long job to start in the morning.

When he woke the next morning, Natsu rolled over in bed to greet the day with his lover, but when he reached to her side of the bed, it was empty.

He sat up, looking around. Sure enough, Lucy wasn't here. Maybe she was in the kitchen, making breakfast and getting ready to leave for their job? Groggily, he got up and walked to the bathroom, stretching and wiping the sleep from his face.

By the look of the bathroom, she hadn't been in here in a while. It didn't smell like perfume or toothpaste or shampoo like it usually did when Lucy did her morning routine. She must have left for the guild already a long time ago.

He thought this was strange, considering they usually went to the guild together after getting up in the morning, or they would meet at the train station if they had started in different places. He shrugged off the uneasy feeling he had and quickly got dressed.

Natsu slipped on his sandals and gracefully hopped out the second story window, as usual, and headed for the guild hall.

Today was a normal day, but something didn't feel right about it.

As he approached the guild, he already knew she wasn't there. He would have smelled her around the entrance. Where the hell could Lucy have gone?

"I don't know man, calm down, she couldn't have gone too far. I mean, you had a job today right?" Gray said as he swirled the straw in his drink with a bored look on his face.

"Yeah, but Mira said the job was cancelled by the client at the last minute! Where else would she be?" Natsu threw his hands in the air, clearly getting frustrated. Several hours had passed since he entered the guild that morning, and he had looked everywhere for Lucy. She wasn't home, she wasn't here, not in any of her favorite reading spots or shops…. Nowhere in Magnolia.

He was going to lose his mind over this. Lucy was missing. He just knew it.

"Sure you didn't do something to make her mad, Lover Boy?" Drawled a drunken Cana sitting at the table across from the two men, as she draped herself over her huge barrel of booze.

"No way! Lucy would have told me if she was mad about something." Wouldn't she?

"Dude don't listen to her, she's drunk, man. Just wait here, she's bound to show up here eventually." Gray reassured him.

"….I guess." Natsu flopped himself down at the table, crossed his arms and kept his eyes on the door, waiting.

…several days later…

The guild was in chaos. Natsu was going so crazy he was almost ripping the walls down. He was interrogating everyone who walked in about Lucy to no avail. No one had seen her for days, just like Natsu.

At this point, even other guild members were getting worried.

Erza, Gray, Natsu, Happy, and Wendy were all gathered together, discussing going out on a search party for Lucy, struggling to talk over the rowdiness that Natsu had caused in the guild. Mid-conversation, a booming voice roared over the crowd, silencing everyone in the hall.

"That's enough!" Turning their heads all at once, the group saw the master standing on top of the bar, looking stern.

"I don't want to hear anyone else talking about going to find Lucy." His eyes traveled around the room, making contact with Natsu's team.

"What? Are you crazy old man? We can't just-" Natsu protested, but was cut off.

"Silence!" The master made his point by making his head three times larger than normal. "Listen up, everyone. Lucy Heartfilia is no longer a member of Fairy Tail. You will cease panicking. You will resume your daily activities and I will hear no more of it!"

Natsu felt his heart drop into his stomach. Not a member of Fairy Tail? What the hell was going on?! He felt like he might throw up, or pass out, or scream, or light the whole pace on fire.


	5. Chapter 5

Lucy was no longer a member of Fairy Tail? Did that ean she broke some kind of rule? No, she's way too much of a stickler for rules to do that. Then, she chose to leave?

Natsu didn't want to believe that thought, but it was the only other option.

Why? Why would she chose to leave? Why would she leave her friends, her guild, her…me?

Something was just not right about all of this. She didn't just pack up and leave. She left everything behind. All of her clothes, all of her bathroom stuff, her novels, her letters and everything were left in her apartment. When asked, the landlady didn't know she was leaving either. She just…

Disappeared. Out of nowhere.

He was enraged that people at the guild were just letting it go. Just like that. Why? Because gramps told them to? Did they know something he didn't or were they just too scared to challenge the master? Even Erza and Gray didn't say anything about it anymore.

It's been a month. Natsu still sleeps at Lucy's apartment every night. He paid her next months rent for her, too, in hopes that she was just on a quick trip and coming back. He would lay awake in her bed, tossing and turning and inhaling deeply the scent of he and Lucy mixed together. He wished he could erase his own scent and only smell her. He could close his eyes and remember their last night together like it was yesterday.

A thought suddenly came to him, and his breath caught short in his throat.

That… wouldn't be why she left. Would it? She was worried if we were ready or not.. but I thought we talked it out and everything was fine. That couldn't be it.

As the moon rose in the sky, Natsu was consumed in his worry and agony. He eventually fell asleep due to pure exhaustion.

Three months since Lucy disappeared. Still no sign, no whisper of her location or if she was alive and well or hurt or…. Worse.

Natsu was losing his mind. He truly felt like he was insane, marching around the guild, pacing, snapping at everyone who tried to get him to cheer up or speak. He felt like an entire part of his being was missing. He felt deprived of something he didn't know and couldn't see or feel. He was having withdrawals of a drug that didn't exist. He was suffocating when there was plenty of air to go around; drowning without being close to water.

He needed Lucy like he needed fire. Like he needed air to breathe, he needed her to keep living. What would he do now? Could he go on without her? How could she have done this to him? She said she would never leave him. She promised.

Team Natsu has started doing missions again, but Natsu is just going through them blindly, doing whatever the job required while searching for signs of Lucy everywhere. They didn't show it, but everyone else was secretly doing the same thing.

Every time they returned from a job, Natsu would go to Lucy's apartment in hopes that she had miraculously returned. Every time he was disappointed, and every time he was more discouraged. How could she have left him like this?

His actions didn't go unnoticed. Lissana would sit at the bar, watching him pace up and down the guild hall. She heard him mumbling to himself and couldn't help but worry for him. Anyone who tried to comfort him would nearly get a Fire Dragons' Iron fist to the face. Lissana included.

Still, she felt like she needed to try. Even if it was futile, even if she knew that Natsu wouldn't get over this easily. She needed to try… even if only for her own selfish reasons.

It was no secret that she had always been in love with the pink haired idiot. Ever since they were kids, she had her whole life planned out. She would one day marry him. She would make him the happiest man alive, shower him with love, and he would do the same for her. They would live in a house in the woods of Magnolia and have children and be a real family… not just playing house like when they were little. She thought her chances were over when she returned and saw that the place had been taken by another.

Sure, Natsu and Lucy were not an item in the sense of being in a relationship, but it was obvious to anyone that they were together. Lissana had lost her chance as soon as Lucy joined the guild, and she wasn't even there to defend her position at Natsu's side. He had so easily replaced her with the celestial mage. When they finally announced their relationship publicly, all hope was lost. Now that their feelings had been realized, she would never be part of Natsu's life the way she wanted to be.

As she sat at the bar, swirling her straw in the drink Mira had made for her, she thought deeply, and almost ashamedly.

Now that Lucy was out of the picture, she really had a shot. Maybe a tiny, smallest chance in hell, but it was there. She could at least try to make him see her differently – convince him that Lucy was never coming back and that he needed to move on. She almost felt sick for thinking of it.

She heard the conversation between Loke and the master. She knew why Lucy wasn't here, where she was. It was an accident. She didn't mean to eavesdrop, she just wanted to talk to the master about a mission that Elfman and Mira had recently taken and find out when they were supposed to be coming back. She didn't mean to hear any of it, but she did. Of course she didn't get caught. As soon as the conversation was over, Loke disappeared into the spirit world and the master sat down at his desk, sighing heavily. Lissana sneaked back down the stairs and didn't look back. She debated on telling someone, but decided if it was secretive enough for Loke to come on his won, it was better kept quiet.

Now that she could take advantage of the situation, she was definitely not going to tell a soul. She would let them, let Natsu, believe that Lucy left with no good reason.

She stood up from the bar, forgetting her drink, and walked over to the pacing Natsu, intent on healing his broken heart.

Six months after Lucy disappeared. Natsu was still reluctant to admit that she was probably not going to come back. As much as he tried to push her away, Lisanna kept coming back to him, trying to help him get over Lucy and be his old self again. While he appreciated the gestures, he couldn't help but be stubborn. He didn't want to get over her. He didn't want to be his old self.

He just wanted Lucy.

One year. Lucy had still not returned. Natsu visited her apartment less and less, but continued to pay the rent. He had a small sliver of hope that she may return, and he wanted her to have a place to return to. Still, he began sleeping at his own place again. He forgot to look for clues on missions, and still managed to have a laugh every now and then.

Lisanna was really there for him through all of it. Nobody would approach him, as if he were taboo and couldn't be touched. But she was there. She was really trying and he could see that she cared for him.

He wasn't as dumb as people made him out to be. He could see the intentions in Lisanna's actions. Sure, they were good friends, but he knew she wanted more than that. He was a jerk to her. Every comforting word, every gentle touch to his shoulders was met with coldness. He was turning into Gray, for Mavis' sake.

Maybe he should try to open up to her a little bit. Lucy was gone. It had been a whole year. Who knows when she'll return?

Eighteen months. By this time, Natsu and Lisanna spent quite a lot of time together. Nobody in the guild mentioned it, but it did seem strange. No one expected Natsu to give up on Lucy; in their hearts, they hadn't given up on her either. But they were happy that he had found a way to start moving on, and to be happy.

"I don't like it." Gray said, speaking through his hands that were folded in front of his face. Erza, who sat across the table from him, looked up from her cake.

"What, Gray?" She asked inquisitively.

"Natsu and Lisanna. It doesn't make any sense. He belongs with Lucy. I know she ain't here, but how could he just give up on our Nakama so easily?" He rested his now fists on the table as he eyed the man in question as he laughed, sitting across the guild at another table with Lisanna, who was also laughing. They seemed so chipper and so… out of place.

"Gray, I think you are being selfish." Erza said, setting down her fork and crossing her arms and staring at the ice wizard.

"What? How?" He looked at her indignantly.

"Our teammate is here, in the guild, with us every day, and he is finally happy again. He may not be fully over it, but he is trying. Doesn't Natsu deserve to be happy? I miss Lucy too, and she will never be replaced in our hearts. But we have to accept the fact that she is not here anymore, and we don't know where she is or if she is even alive. I think it's selfish of you to look down upon Natsu's attempt at happiness with Lisanna when you have everything he doesn't. How could you know his feelings?"

Gray looked guiltily down at his hands, now resting flat on the table. It was true, in the past year and a half, his relationship with Juvia had really bloomed. They were finally clicking on a better level, and were openly 'together.' He was happy with her and she with him. He had his Nakama, his guild, his girlfriend, everything he could want. He really couldn't judge Natsu for trying to be happy too.

Lucy's rent started going unpaid, her things were moved out of the apartment but the Landlady wasn't heartless enough to throw it in the streets. It was packed in a storage unit and held… just in case.

Two years have come and gone. Natsu was just returning from a solo mission (with happy, of course). As he approached the guild, ready to greet his Nakama and his girlfriend, something seemed off. He had been in such a good mood. He did really well on the mission, killing a giant monster that had been threatening a city. The people and the mayor thanked him generously with tons of food and he got to walk home since it was close enough to avoid the train. Everything about today was going great. Why did he feel so uneasy?

Then he smelled it. He smelled something he hadn't in two years. It can't be, it's impossible. Everyone thinks she's dead. She's gone. She's not coming back.

And yet, there she was. Standing in front of the guild. Looking up at the massive lettering of Fairy Tail, her back to him. Blonde hair up in a half ponytail to the side, as usual, and in the same usual outfit she would always wear. She looked so normal standing there. Was it an illusion?

But the smell was unmistakable. It was so strong he thought he would be knocked over. He blinked, dropping his bag. Happy questioned his actions, only to stop and stare open mouthed at the spot Natsu was looking at.

"…L…Lucy?" He nearly choked. She turned, brown eyes gazing directly at him. Her face lit up with happiness.

"Hey, Natsu!" She said, as if she had just seen him yesterday. He felt sick. He couldn't breathe. And he was angry.

How can she just show up here after two years of deserting him, without a word, without a letter, without even an explanation or letting him know she was alive? What does she think will happen? Who does she think she is, or who he is?

As relieved as he really felt to see her standing there in front of him, alive and well, he didn't want to see her there. He wished she had stayed away. It would have been so much easier.


	6. Chapter 6

**I am so sorry how long this update took! I have been so busy and haven't had a single moment to write! Thank you for being such loyal readers and enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

"… _L…Lucy?" He nearly choked. She turned, brown eyes gazing directly at him. Her face lit up with happiness._

" _Hey, Natsu!" She said, as if she had just seen him yesterday. He felt sick. He couldn't breathe. And he was angry._

 _How can she just show up here after two years of deserting him, without a word, without a letter, without even an explanation or letting him know she was alive? What does she think will happen? Who does she think she is, or who he is?_

 _As relieved as he really felt to see her standing there in front of him, alive and well, he didn't want to see her there. He wished she had stayed away. It would have been so much easier._

* * *

At a loss for words, Natsu stood there, gaping at her like she was a ghost. Lucy made a move toward him, but just before she could approach him, the doors of the guild hall opened to reveal Lisanna.

The young takeover mage assessed the scene in front of her. She looked at Lucy, then back to Natsu, then back to Lucy.

"Lucy? What are you doing here?" She asked, partially in disbelief. A hint of worry could be heard in her tone as her voice cracked.

Natsu was snapped out of his stupor by the sound of Lisanna's voice. He decided that as much as he wanted to, he would not run up to Lucy and embrace her. He would not cry and beg for an explanation as to why she left without a word to him. He wouldn't ask her why she broke her promise to him.

He directed his gaze to Lisanna, who was still worriedly looking between him and the celestial mage.

"I don't really care why she's here. Come on, Lisanna, we had a date planned today, right? I was just coming to pick you up." Don't look, don't look, don't look…. He looked. Just a tiny, quick glance at the blonde, whose eyes turned immediately to shock, and then to realization, and sadness. It was like he put a cold knife in her heart.

What right did she have to be upset with him? None at all, not a single bit.

"Natsu –" Lucy started, but he cut her off.

"Lucy." He was closer now, approaching Lisanna. He refused to look at her as he walked past her, grabbed Lisanna's hand to drag her away from the guild hall, and turned in another direction to walk away. "I don't care what you have to say, Lucy. Maybe I used to want to know, but I don't anymore. I just don't."

But he did. He could feel his legs trembling when he walked past her. He felt his heartbeat speed up when he was close enough to reach out to her. He fought the urge to hug her and never let go when he was so close to her scent he nearly bit off a chunk of his own tongue.

He could sense her reaching toward him, she was going to say something. Before he could tell her to keep her words and hands to herself, the guild doors burst open and a blur of blue hair and tears came rushing out, tackling Lucy to the ground.

"Lu! You're back! I can't believe you're back!" Levy cried ugly tears, buried in Lucy's arms as snot ran down her face and she bawled like a baby. "Gajeel told me he could smell you outside, I didn't believe him. But you're here!"

Lucy smiled and rubbed Levy's back as she wailed. She exhaled in relief. Thank goodness she still had her best friend. There was really no doubt that Levy would always be there no matter what.

Natsu took this time to escape with Lisanna. He couldn't take any more of this. He didn't want to welcome her back just yet. He gripped her hand tighter and dragged her off with him. Lisanna continued to let Natsu lead her as she looked back in shock at the two women in front of the guild. When they entered the forest, she finally turned her head back to the pink haired mage in front of her and disappeared.

"I missed you too, Levy. But you look so old!" Lucy joked with her best friend, trying to ignore the fact that Natsu just completely rejected her, and left with who she can only assume is his new girlfriend. Levy looked up to her and when their eyes met, she laughed just like old times. Lucy couldn't help but feel guilty for leaving Levy – leaving everyone – so in the dark about where she had been. She couldn't wait to tell her all about it.

"You have a lot to tell me, but let's go inside first. Everyone needs to see you right now!" Levy stood up, brushed off her skirt and wiped her eyes. She pulled Lucy up by her arm, dragging her into the guild hall.

* * *

Three days later, and the party at Fairy Tail was still going on. All over the guild hall people were laughing and dancing and generally being merry. The cause for celebration? The return of their celestial mage, Lucy Heartfilia.

The scene was as expected. Master Makarov was on the brink of passing out, sitting on the bar, swishing his mug around and spouting meaningless speeches. Various other people were already past that point, laying around the guild in random places with happy drunk faces. Gray was currently challenging Elfman to a manly arm wrestle. Cana was working on her seventh drinking game, raking in the winnings. She'd already beaten several people, including Freed, from whom she had won his shoes, and Gajeel, who lost his headband but refused to actually give it up.

Erza still burst into tears every time she saw Lucy. Somehow, it seemed like she couldn't fully comprehend that her friend was back, and alive here in front of her.

Lucy was originally hesitant to start drinking and celebrating, but the longer the party went on, the less resolve she had. She held her drink in her hand, looking around at all her friends and couldn't help but feel bad for making them all so sad for so long. She was so happy to be home, but one thing kept ruining her joy.

Natsu hadn't been back to the guild even once since the day she returned. Happy had come, mostly because he couldn't stay away from Carla. He gave Lucy a massive hug, flying full speed at her and slamming into her chest. He cried, telling her how much he missed her.

"Happy, where's Natsu? It's not like him to stay away from the guild this long…" Lucy asked, after catching up with the exceed for a few minutes. He stared blankly at her for a moment.

"Well, he's just real busy right now, Lucy. He's always with Lisanna now. He doesn't have time to catch fish with me anymore! Wahhhh!" He started crying again, hugging Lucy. She hugged him back, looking up to see a few other people in the guild were looking at them, trying to listen. It was like the subject of Natsu was suddenly very interesting. When they noticed her looking, her guildmates looked away.

"It's ok, Happy. You and me will go fishing tomorrow, if you want, okay?" She said as she stroked the fur on his head.

"Really?" He looked up at her, all traces of sadness gone from his face. "Yay! Me and Lucy are gonna catch some yummy fishies!" He flew off excitedly looking for Wendy and Carla.

It's not like she expected much. She knew Natsu would be upset and need some time. She knew he would want a long, really good explanation. But he didn't want an explanation. He didn't want anything to do with her. And as much as she knew this was a possibility when she left, it was still painful. She felt so empty and alone, despite all of her family around her. She was sick to her stomach and felt like she couldn't breathe properly. She started nervously scratching her wrist as she thought.

Everyone welcomed her back so quickly. The Master reinstated her membership to Fairy Tail and it was like nothing ever happened. She got her apartment back. After explaining the situation to the landlady, she immediately started her lease back up and returned all of her personal items. Nobody asked her where she had been. Nobody pestered her for information. They were just glad that she was back and respected that she would explain when she felt she was ready. Everything was as it should be. Almost.

After leaving the party, Lucy walked down her street just like she used to, balancing on the edge near the river. She looked down at her keys dangling at her hip, and brushed her hand against them, making them jingle against each other. Inhaling deeply, she thought to herself, "I will get through this. One day at a time. Natsu will come around." She hoped.

* * *

She laid awake in her bed that night, wishing he would burst in the window like he used to. As much as she was annoyed by his antics, she really missed them. She even missed Happy! She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes, and when the first sob left her lips she couldn't stop the endless rain. She held onto her pillow, crying into the soft fabric and trying as hard as she could to suppress the pain in her chest. She was hollow without Natsu. He was her other half, her soulmate. He had rejected her completely, without explanation or sympathy.

Suddenly, her wrist burned like there was a flame gripping her tightly. She sat up, crying out and reaching to put out the fire, only to find nothing there. All she could see was her own pale skin. It looked fine, until she looked closer and noticed a distinct bite mark appearing on the inside of her left wrist below her thumb. It was glowing slightly, like embers in a fireplace before fading into a scar.

Where did this come from?! When did I get bitten? What bit me?

Lucy realized she wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight. She threw on her shoes in a jacket, clad in her pink button up pajamas, and walked out to the door to Levy's house. She had a lot to get off her chest, and she knew no matter what time it was, Levy would be there to listen. The scar on her wrist still lingered with a faint burn. It didn't hurt, but she would definitely not forget it was there.

Making sure her keys were secured to her waist, she shut the front door of her apartment building behind her, and headed off in the chilly night toward the home of her best friend.

* * *

 _Flashback, Natsu POV_

 _Natsu was having a particularly bad day. Not for any specific reason, other than his constant state of depression. Lucy's disappearance was more than he could handle. Some days were better now that he let Lisanna into his life. She somehow managed to ease the pain. She always knew the right thing to say. What a good friend._

 _He laid on his couch, arm draped over his eyes to keep the tears from falling. He heard the mechanism of his front door clicking open, and looked up to see Lisanna entering his house freely, like Lucy used to. His heart sank. He had hoped it would be her._

" _What's wrong, Natsu?" She asked with a concerned look in her blue eyes, crouching down by the couch._

" _Just thinking too much." He said honestly._

" _About…her?" She said tentatively, trying not to push the subject further than he wanted._

" _Yeah. I just can't get my head around it. We made a promise! She said she would never leave me. She said…" he broke off, and Lisanna could hear the pain in her voice. It made her angry, and she wanted so badly to replace his pain with anything. Any emotion would be better. Even anger. Even outrage._

" _Natsu, I can't take it anymore. I have something to tell you." She sat on the floor and looked up at him with guilty eyes. He sat up, waiting for the explanation. He looked at her with such hope in his eyes. She felt the anger welling up in her. He was hoping she knew where Lucy was._

 _She needed to crush that hope if she had a chance._

" _I overheard…something. A few months ago. I didn't tell you because it seemed like it was an important secret at the time. But I just can't see you like this anymore. I want you to move on, Natsu."_

 _He stared at her with anticipation. "Well? What did you hear?"_

 _She knew there was no turning back once she let this slip… but she went ahead with it._

" _I actually overheard Loke telling Master that Lucy was leaving. Master was outraged that Lucy didn't come herself, but Loke said she was tired of everything and looking for an adventure somewhere else. She was tired of the guild and was bored. She wanted to leave the guild and didn't know if she would be coming back or not. When Master asked about you…" Lisanna looked away._

" _Tell me, Lisanna. I need to know." He grabbed her shoulders, his eyes boring into hers._

" _Loke said that Lucy was overwhelmed by your relationship and that she didn't want the commitment. That she would rather be free to be with whoever she wants, and the only people she truly cared about were her spirits." Tears started dripping down her face. She covered her eyes with her hands. "I'm so sorry, Natsu. I wanted to tell you, I was just hoping that she would come back and everything would be fine, but I guess she was really serious…I'm so sorry."_

 _Natsu's arms dropped to his sides. He slouched back into the couch and stared off into space. His heart was broken._

" _No…I know you were only keeping it from me to protect me. Thank you Lisanna, you really are a good friend."_

* * *

 _(The day Lucy returned)_

"Natsu. Natsu!" Lisanna shouted to get Natsu out of his trance. He was still walking further into the forest with her in tow. He finally stopped, but did not turn to look at her. She knew he was still processing what happened, what he was feeling. Her heart was racing. Would she lose him now? After all of her hard work? All the secrets and all the manipulative things she's done would be for nothing. She already felt bad enough for doing it, she didn't want to have done it and have it be a complete waste too.

"Natsu, are you okay?" She touched his shoulder. He flinched, but did not pull away from her. That was good.

"…I'm fine. Just surprised." He said through his teeth. She pulled her hand out of his and he turned to look at her. She shifted uneasily, rubbing her elbow with her hand and looking side to side, anywhere but directly at him. She was worried.

"You…you can go back, if you want to." She said quietly. He felt his heart sink. He didn't want to hurt Lisanna. She had been there to comfort him and get him out of the hole he was digging himself for all those months Lucy was gone. Now she was trying to make him happy still, even if it would hurt her.

"I don't want to go back." He said firmly. "I don't need to. Lucy may have been part of my life before, but she chose to leave. I won't just go crawling back like that. I've got a new life, and I've got you."

Got him.

Lisanna looked up at him, smiling. She finally managed to stare into the distance long enough to get some tears to form in her dry eyes. She blinked and allowed them to fall as she looked into Natsu's eyes. He looked worried at the sight of her tears. She knew he was unsteady in his choice, no matter how sure he sounded. She had to get him to stay, even if it was only out of guilt, he had to stay.

"Thank you, Natsu! Thank you for not leaving me!" She cried, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He slowly hugged her back. He could feel a sickness creeping into his stomach as he verbally announced his rejection of Lucy. It left a bad taste in his mouth.


End file.
